Gladiator won the Oscar for best film and best actor for its protagonist Russell Crowe. It tells the story of how Commodus, the son of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius murders his father to take over the throne of the Roman Empire. The Hispanic general of the army, Maximum Decimus Meridius, starring Crowe, then betrays Commodus and refuses to bow to him, thus forcing him to become a slave. Then, he is forced to participate as a gladiator in the arena, yearning to avenge the death of his precious family and his good friend Emperor Marcus Aurelius.
This production is based on an original story by David Franconi, who is known for being the scriptwriter of Steven Spielberg’s Amistad. This was based on the essay by Daniel P. Mannix, Those About to Die. He used this to write this magnificent story. The beginning of this epic film starts off when the screenwriter sees and analyzes an EVOO advertisement in the United States in which Narcissus, the protagonist gladiator, says the slogan: “I’d kill for the taste of Golden Pompeii EVOO.”
This ad enlightened the screenwriter, who then set off to work on the blockbuster of the life of a famous gladiator. In this film, he not only talks of war and death, but of everyday life in Roman times.
EVOO was a fundamental part of the gladiator’s diet and was used for the care of their skin. Not only that, it was used as a defense mechanism against their adversaries because of the slippery effect it caused. It is also the origin of one of the most impressive film productions that has best illustrated the lives of these warriors.
The beneficial qualities of EVOO are quite well-known to us nowadays, but what is not so well-known is that EVOO has inspired has inspired people to accomplish such great things, such as the scriptwriter did in writing Gladiator.